Page 6 of ReBOrB

The brothers had some immunity.

Reb worried about what that meant. Some immunity. He was already tired, so didn’t want to inhale a fatigue-inducing aroma. And he certainly didn’t need something to increase Cameron’s appeal.

Leaning down, he flipped the small switch on the left. Immediately the hover started filtering their air. Reb knew he couldn’t relax until he was on the other side of these fields.

Cameron

Cammy let the soothing hum of the small aircraft calm her nerves. It was the perfect white noise. The man who rescued her, Reb… something… called the craft a hover. She didn’t bother to open her eyes and look around. She could inspect her surroundings at any time.

For now, she listened to Reb breathe. To his occasional musings. She knew he wasn’t talking to anyone but himself. She could tell he was worried.

Right now, she didn’t care why.

Reb was close to six feet tall. Cammy was only five feet three inches. He had wide, strong shoulders and looked to be in the best of health. She wasn’t. He could balance the weight of all that worry—while she concentrated on feeling better.

Her head hurt. There was a low, ambient light in the hover. She could see the glow through her eyelids. Cammy slowly moved her hand. Covering her eyes, she felt a little pain relief. Her stomach… well. It growled, so she supposed her body thought it needed food. Since she had no memory of the last few days… maybe weeks… she bet her only sustenance had been intravenous fluids.

But she was also dizzy and nauseous. She didn’t think she could eat anything and keep it down. The thought of vomiting while she had this headache made her want to cry. Food was a distant worry. Unless Reb had something like saltine crackers or maybe a little chicken broth tucked away on this ship, she wouldn’t be eating anything.

Cammy didn’t spare any wishes for the comfort foods of home, figuring it was pointless.

She was worried. Reb said she’d had a brain bleed and the alien doctors had repaired her injury with surgery. They wanted her to avoid stress, and not get hit or fall for several weeks. Taking a slow, deep breath, she worked on relaxing each muscle.

Cammy was a nurse. She was pretty sure Reb didn’t know that about her. Fully aware of the symptoms and prognosis of a brain bleed—she would bet the surgery hadn’t taken care of her problem. The treatment might have slowed the flow, but it hadn’t stopped it. Taking another deep breath, she let that worry go.

There was no going back. Not to the alien treatment center, as Cam refused to be used as bait for her sister. She had a pretty good idea that the sisters wouldn’t be going back to Earth, either. For one thing, she didn’t want to. If they could find a place to live where they would be safe, productive, and happy… why not space?

Both Cameron and her sister had marketable skills. Casey was a chef, and she was a nurse. She figured they’d need some additional training in alien foods and diseases… but she believed that was doable.

They certainly had nothing to go back to. Not really. Casey owned a couple of restaurants that she loved. However, Cam knew her sister. Give her a chance and she’ll replicate that success on whatever planet they settled. It wasn’t the specific restaurants and people she loved—Casey was on a mission to feed people and make them happy—no matter where they lived.

Cam could work at a hospital anywhere. Her reasons for becoming a nurse weren’t hard to understand. Her twin got cancer at an early age and Cam found her calling when she helped take care of Casey.

Neither of them had a love life to return to. Casey hadn’t dated anyone special in years, and Cam was definitely finished with Dawson. It might have taken her a while to get there… but the love she used to feel for him had not only died… it turned to hate. It thrilled her to be out in space—completely out of his reach.

Just thinking about him made her head throb—so she quit.

Their parents were gone. Mom and dad sat them down a year ago and said they were selling everything they owned. They planned to travel the world and spend time together. Neither Cammy nor Casey had gotten so much as a phone call in the last three months.

It didn’t surprise the sisters. It hurt a little. But it had always been Casey and Cameron against the world. They took care of each other. As soon as Reb took her to her sister, the twins would determine what to do next.

They’d been rescued from the red furry aliens. Cam was freed from the hospital and whisked away from a plot to trap Casey. Things were looking up.

The ship’s humming slowed, then stopped. She felt the light blue alien hottie move to her side. Cameron might not feel great, but she was excited to open her eyes and take back her life

ReBOrB

Reb couldn’t believe his luck. Once they crossed over the field of flowers, the next section held yama vines. More importantly, he could see the extensive field held nearly ripe yama. The green, knobby fruit was amazingly nutritious and, once harvested, would keep for days. Weeks if he picked both the soft, ripe fruit to eat now, and added some immature fruit to ripen in the weeks to come.

He certainly hoped they weren’t on their own for weeks. But it was best to be prepared. There was enough water, protein bars, and dehydrated food to last for several days. His goal was to find a place to hide out that gave him access to more food and water. He needed it to be close enough to his Captain and the other brothers who remained on Viant… so they could quickly join him. Yet he needed to be far enough away that the DoMicile could land without their signal being picked up by the docking station security.

His brothers wanted him to go to the other side of the planet before searching for a place for their ship to pick them up. But Reb had a feeling. One that told him he should stay closer to the Captain.

As he skimmed over hundreds of vine rows, he kept searching for the caretaker’s house. Cammy needed clothing. The robe was great in the evening or when it was chilly—but it would be too much on a warm, sunny day. He wanted to find her something better.

The field was extensive. They left the city surrounding Viant’s docking station several hours ago. And he’d been flying over the yama vines for close to another hour. He still couldn’t see the end. It was dark out here. His only light came from the small moon.

Viant had two moons. The small one ruled the early hours of the night. It gave off just enough light that he wouldn’t crash into anything big. But it didn’t allow him to see into the distance, nor to make out any detail. The second, larger moon would take its place after midnight. The bigger moon would provide enough light that he could go exploring. He wanted to find a place to park the hover before the second moon took over the sky.

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